Depression
What is Depression?
Depression is a diagnosable condition in which a person feels low in mood and/or a lack of interest or pleasure in their daily activities. Alongside this, people may experience a variety of other symptoms like:
- Sleeping more or less than usual.
- Being noticeably agitated or really slowed in their actions.
- Feeling fatigued.
- Feeling worthless or guilty.
- Being less able to focus or more indecisive.
- Having an increase / decrease in their appetite, or gaining / losing weight.
- Thoughts about death or suicide.
Obviously, when people experience certain situations such as grief or some other type of loss or significant change in their life, these symptoms may be expected. But if this type of situation is not happening, and if these experiences continue over a period longer than 2 weeks, then this may be depression. We highly recommend chatting with one of our psychologists to get an official assessment and diagnosis.
Depression is a reasonably common condition and has a huge impact globally. In Australia for instance, it affects 1 in 10 people presenting to their GP and 15% of us will develop depression during our lifetimes.
How do you treat Depression?
Psychological treatment is the most effective form of intervention for depression and research suggests that antidepressant medication is only recommended in moderate-severe cases, in combination with therapy.
There are a number of therapies that have been shown to be effective for treating depression. Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT) has a particularly strong evidence base and is widely used to treat depression around the world. CBT involves helping you re-engage with your life by doing activities which give you a sense of enjoyment or achievement. It can involve working on lifestyle factors such as diet, exercise, sleep, socialising, etc. In addition, CBT involves focussing on the person’s negative thinking in order to create more balanced, realistic thought patterns.
Treatments for Depression at Cova
We are all complex, and sometimes when it comes to treatment for depression, one size does not fit all. Fortunately, in addition to CBT, a number of other treatments have been shown to be effective in the treatment of depression including:
- Mindfulness-based interventions
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Schema Therapy
- Compassion based therapy
- Trauma informed and attachment based therapies
- Eye Movement Desensitisation & Reprocessing (EMDR)
At the onset of therapy, you don’t need to know which therapy to start with. Your therapist will conduct a thorough assessment and you will collaboratively develop a treatment plan which will contain one or more of the therapies listed above.
How We Can Help!
If you or a loved one is experiencing depression or you are having a response to a life situation/loss that feels understandable but is still hard to manage, our therapists can help. Get in touch with our friendly reception team to book an appointment. Contact us by:
We are available for both face to face and telehealth sessions.
